The Ramblings of a Madman
by happycabbage
Summary: Missing for 6 monthes after defeating Voldemort, Harry is found in a Muggle psychiatric ward. And Draco Malfoy may be the only one able to bring him back to himself. HPDM, AU following OotP, ADOPTION OPPORTUNITIES, SEE PROFILE FOR DETAILS
1. The Psychiatric Ward

Author's (usual) note: (sigh) do I even need to go into this? Will contain Yaoi (guy on guy) relationships, possible violence, language, etc. etc. etc.

Disclaimer: You know the drill: I own nothing but the plot, yadda yadda yadda…

This is non-HBP AU.

Please keep in mind that the last time I went to a hospital was when I was about five, so I really have no idea how they are actually run and I'm too lazy to look it up. So please please please, no comments about how wrong I am about the way hospitals actually are.

I originally meant this to be a one-shot that simply viewed Harry as a crazy person in a mental ward at a hospital, and his favorite nurse starts to wonder if he was telling the truth when he was taken home by his "long-lost relatives", a smiling old man with twinkling blue eyes(wink), two younger men, one with long greasy black hair and a hook nose and the other with greying light brown hair and amber eyes(wink wink), and a blond, pointy-faced, grey-eyed, teenage boy(wink wink wink). But then as I was writing it the fluffiness between Harry and that certain blond teenager got to be too much fun and I simply had to turn this into a longer fic.

So here. Read and be happy.

btw, you might want to grab a box of tissues.

The Ramblings of a Madman 

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Ch 1) The Psychiatric Ward 

"Goodnight, Jo. See you tomorrow."

The nurse flashed him a smile. "G'night, Dr. Morgan." He smiled back tiredly and left. The night shift nurse listened to him go and turned back to her paperwork, every once in a while scanning the row of security camera screens. Each one showed the bedroom of a different patient. Most were sleeping. However, one she noticed after a moment, was not.

She watched the patient for a while. After realizing he had no intention of going to sleep on his own, she set down her pen and went to check on the patient in question.

When she opened the door, she found her favorite patient sitting on the floor next to his bed, legs drawn close to his body with his arms wrapped around his knees. He was staring into space, smiling slightly.

"Harry?"

18-year-old Harry Potter looked up at Jo with bright green eyes. Jo loved those eyes; Harry said they looked just like his mothers had. "Hello Jo," he said softly.

"Harry why aren't you sleeping? Lights out was half an hour ago, sweetie."

"I can't. I'm waiting for them."

Jo cocked an eyebrow. "Them? Who's them?"

"Them," Harry repeated,"Them, they're coming. They'll be here soon."

"Who's they, Harry?"

"Moony and the Phoenix, the Prince and his Dragon. They'll be here soon, I know it."

Jo sighed. "Come on, love, let's get you into bed."

Harry just smiled and hummed softly as Jo tucked him in.

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Jo often wondered about Harry. He was always so sweet, so courteous even in his madness, which was one reason why Jo liked him so much. He had a child-like innocence about him, as well as a lingering sadness. They weren't exactly sure who he was; he had been found wandering the countryside six monthes before. He had told them his name was Harry Potter, but with all the other things he had told him about his past, it wasn't surprising that they didn't trust his word on that. Particularly since he thought he was a wizard.

He had in his head that he was the savior of what he called the wizarding world, though he seemed to resent that. Whenever he talked about wizards he would talk about an "Order of the Phoenix," who appeared to be the good guys, and the "Death Eaters," which quite clearly were evil. He spoke of three things with particular fear: the Death Eaters, someone he called You-Know-Who, and dementors.

Curious, Jo had once asked Harry to tell her what those things were. Later she almost wished she hadn't. Of the Death Eaters he had said that they were exactly what their name suggested.

"And You-Know-Who? Who was he, Harry?"

"He was their leader," he had said, misty-eyed. " Death, and crimson snake-eyes. Blood blood blood…and the pain of course…" he muttered under his breath.

"What about dementors, Harry?" Jo asked him apprehensively. After the morbid answers she had gotten for the first two, she wasn't sure she wanted to know.

"Cold," he said, glassy-eyed, breathing heavily,"Deathly cold…never be happy, no, never again…rattling breath, and scabby dead skin, misery forever….you'll never be happy again…suck out your soul if they can, bloody soul-suckers…so cold…cold as ice, cold as death…"

He shivered and fell silent, refusing to speak for the rest of the day.

The Order of the Phoenix, however, he held in high regard. In particular the leader, who he called Albus Dumbledore. Others he spoke of mostly were a family called the Weasleys and somebody called Remus. Other names came up, but those were the most frequent.

Then there were the nightmares. The doctors had started giving him tranquilizers before bed in a futile attempt to stay the horrible dreams that plagued him every night. He would scream in his sleep, and sleep talk. Jo had caught some names when he talked. Two people named Cedric and Sirius were often called, and a Ron or Hermione fairly often as well. But there was one name mentioned every night without fail, tranquilizers or no.

Draco.

Harry would have whole conversations with the person called Draco in his sleep, sometimes fighting with him, other times tender words were being exchanged, other times it was simply small talk.

In the mornings Harry refused to talk about the dreams and nightmares. He always looked so haunted after sleeping. Jo and the other nurses and doctors had learned not to mention the dreams. If someone tried to get him to talk about them he would sit silently with his fingers stuffed in his ears until they left.

But every night, Harry dreamed.

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The day after Jo had found Harry sitting up awake started ordinary enough. Just a regular day, nothing special or unexpected happening. But all through her shift Jo had felt antsy, like something was going to happen.

She had just come off her break when she looked up from her desk to find the four strangest looking men she had ever seen standing in front of her. She jumped slightly. "Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't hear you come in.

"That's quite alright, miss," said the old man in front. He smiled, and Jo couldn't help but smile back. He had a kind smile, and his blue eyes twinkled merrily behind half-moon glasses. He had long silver hair and a matching beard, and was wearing what appeared to be a bright purple Italian suit.

There were two middle-aged men behind him. The first was tall, dressed all in black with greasy black hair, an overlarge, hooked nose, and hard black eyes. The guy seemed to have a thing for black.

The other man had greying light brown hair and amber eyes. He was wearing a light blue jacket over a white t-shirt and blue jeans. He looked the most normal, but there was something about him that told Jo she ought to stay away from him, despite the kindness radiating from his sad-but-hopeful expression.

A teenage boy about Harry's age with white-blond hair and stormy grey eyes skulked at the back of the strange group. He looked so sad and it took Jo a moment to realize that it was really his eyes that did it; they were dull, defeated, and dead looking. She repressed a shiver.

"Can I help you with something, gentlemen?"

"I sincerely hope so, dear lady. We were told by a contact of ours that we might be able to find a boy by the name of Harry Potter here."

Jo's eyes widened. "Why, yes! Are you family?" She frowned. None of them resembled Harry at all.

"The only family he has left, I'm afraid," the old man said sadly. "We've come to take him home." He pulled some papers out of his suit and handed them to Jo. She looked them over carefully. They were release papers, all very clear and legal. Harry was to be released into the care of one Remus Lupin. Jo did a double take. Was this the same Remus that Harry had spoken of? "Which of you is Mr. Lupin?"

The man with the light brown hair cleared his throat. "That would be me. I'm his guardian. I adopted him after his parents and his godfather died. They were my best friends. I promised to take care of him."

"Oh. I'm sorry, I didn't…here, I'll take you to see him," Jo said awkwardly. The three older men looked relieved and smiled at eachother, but the blond teen looked at her sharply. "We can really take him home with us?" he asked, disbelief eveident in his voice.

Jo smiled. "Yes, of course, dear."

The blond still didn't seem convinced, and turned to the black-clothed man standing next to him. "This is real, right Severus? We finally found him? He's coming home?"

The man turned to the teen and smiled at him, and the simple gesture softened his whole face. "Yes, Draco. He's finally coming home to us."

Jo started. Draco? _The_ Draco? This was the boy that Harry dreamed of every night? If she had any doubts, they were gone after that moment of realization. If this was Draco, then they had to be family.

"Miss?" the old man said softly, "If we could see him now?"

"What? Oh, right, sorry!" She hit the button on the underside of the desk that opened the electronic door, and the men shuffled in. Jo left her desk and met them in the hall. She relocked the electric door and led Harry's family down the row of rooms all the way to the end. She unlocked the door to Harry's room and, motioning to the others to wait a moment, stepped inside.

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Draco, his Draco, his Dragon, he was coming. Harry had dreamed it, but he hardly dared trust in the dreams. After all, Dr Morgan and Jo said the wizards weren't real. Did that mean the Dragon wasn't real either? But he had to come!

He had told Jo they were coming, but he knew she didn't believe him. He wished he had a Sharpie marker. Then he could draw them for her, show Jo that they were really real.

He looked at the sock in his hand and frowned. A sock wouldn't quite work, but it was better than nothing. He held it up to the wall and was pleased to find the sock had left a thick black line where he drew. He smiled then, niether realizing nor caring that the sock was gone and in it's place was his favorite permanent marker.

He hummed happily as he doodled. He liked drawing, and often tried to draw the people from his fragmented memories and dreams, trying to prove their existence. But sometimes, this time included, he couldn't recall all the details. Trying to remember made his head ache.

So instead he drew a snowflake.

And a leaf. And a book. He paused. Books…books…His eyes glazed as a memory took shape.

"_Honestly, Harry, the right spell has to be in one of these."_

"_Oh, come on Hermione! You can't find everything in a book!"_

"_We would've found it by now if you'd actually help, Ronald, instead of complaining."_

No! No! They weren't real! Jo said so! But then Harry, was a wizard, too. So if the wizards weren't real, then niether was he, and it shouldn't matter what Jo said.

He started drawing again. They'd come. Any minute now, they'd be here. And then Jo would have to believe him.

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Harry was lying on his back on the floor at the end of of his bed, his legs resting up on the mattress. He was humming softly again – he did that a lot – and in his right hand he held a black Sharpie marker. With which he was currently doodling on the wall.

"Oh, no, Harry, not again!" Jo said reproachfully, shaking her head in amusement nonetheless. "We've had to repaint your room five times already! I don't even want to know where you keep getting the Sharpies from!"

Harry stopped humming and tilted his head back so he was looking at her upside down, grinning lopsidedly. She knelt next to the boy and gently pulled the marker out of his hand, capping it off and pocketing it.

"Harry, your family is here. They want to take you home. Would you like that, love?"

Harry rolled over and pulled his legs off the end of the bed so he was sprawled on the floor on his stomach, head propped up on his hand, still grinning sweetly. He glanced at the three older men now standing in the doorway and looked back at Jo, now grinning broadly.

"See, Jo? I told you last night. And here they are! I see Moony and the Phoenix, and there is the Prince, but where is the Prince's Dragon today? I don't see him. Surely you didn't leave him behind, Half-Blood Prince?" Harry sat up and tried to look around the three men in the doorway. They just stood there, staring at him.

Jo stood and backed away off to the side, watching them carefully. One look at their faces and she instantly knew that whatever they had expected, it wasn't this. Harry's guardian, Mr Lupin, had tears coursing down his face. The other two wore expressions of shock, and loss, and terrible sadness.

It was apparently too much for poor Lupin. Covering his hand with his face, he fled the room. The old gentleman followed quickly after him, to comfort him, Jo supposed.

The blonde teenager hesitated in the doorway for a moment. Harry finally saw him and his eyes widened considerably. He started trembling.

Draco slowly stepped forward and dropped to his knees in front of the smaller teen, his eyes never leaving Harry's face. Harry stared back at him, mouthopen slightly, eyes huge. Jo and the man in black – Severus, had Draco called him? – stood in the doorway, watching and holding their breath. Jo could sense someone standing behind her and knew that the other two men had come back and were standing there, watching as well.

Suddenly Harry smiled again, gazing at Draco through half closed eyes.

"There he is," he said softly,"I see him now. There's my Dragon. Hello Draco."

Draco burst into tears and hugged Harry close. "Oh, Harry!" he murmured, pressing his lips to the soft raven locks, holding him tightly. Harry hugged the other teen back, whispering something the others could not hear. They sat there like that for a few minutes, Draco sobbing softly into Harry's shoulder and Harry soothing him, rubbing his back gently.

After a bit Harry pushed Draco back so he could see the other boy's face. With gentle fingers he wiped away the blond's tears from his cheeks.

"Draco, why are you crying, Dragon? You and Moony and the Phoenix and the Prince came to save me right?" Harry giggled. "Imagine that, Draco! The Dragon and the Big Bad Wolf _help_ the Prince to save the Princess!" He stopped. "Does that mean I'm the Princess?"

The old man chuckled softly behind them, and Draco hugged Harry again, kissing the mentally ill boy on the cheek. "No, Harry, you're not a princess. But we are here to take you home."

Draco stood then, picking up the smaller teen and holding him to his chest the way he would have a small child. Harry sighed, wrapping his arms and legs around Draco and laying his head on the blond's shoulder.

"I missed you, Draco. I'm so glad we're going home."

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Say it with me now: awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww! (sniff sniff) Tissues, anyone? I started crying while writing this one, and I hope it makes you all cry too! …In the nice 'that's so sweet' way, of course.


	2. Hero's Welcome

Author's Note: Wow. It's a miracle. I updated this story. w00t for me! Violence, language, and Yaoi, HPDM. Same as chapter one. Don't say I didn't warn you.

Disclaimer: Not mine. Obviously.

So here it is. The long awaited chapter two.

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Ch 2) Hero's Welcome.

Once the wizards had gotten Harry onto the hospital lift, Severus took his wand out and transfigured Harry's hospital gown into a pair of black jeans and t-shirt. Remus snorted softly at his color choice. "Really, Severus, must you always pick black for everything?"

"There is nothing wrong with black," The stoic man said stiffly.

"And you shouldn't do that in public anyways. What if the Muggles had a camera in here?"

"Then I'd obliviate them afterwards."

Remus just shook his head.

"Can you two save it for later?" said Draco, his arms still wrapped tightly around his lost-and-found lover. They looked at his tear-streaked face and fell silent.

The group got a ride on a Muggle bus to get to Grimmauld Place. They didn't think it would be a good idea to take any magical means of transportation with Harry's condition, since many such methods were quite jarring to the mind and body. Harry was fairly quiet on the ride home, staring out the window and smiling to himself. Occasionally he would hum or mutter something under his breath, giggling.

His behavior didn't get too many stares from the other passengers.

The five wizards were only too happy to leave the crowded bus when it reached their stop, which was still some way away from their final destination. From there they debated whether or not they should walk the five more blocks it was to Order Headquarters. Severus didn't want to have more Muggles on the public transport systems staring at them, but Draco didn't want to tire Harry any further by walking.

"And anyways, it's not like we won't have people staring at us if we were to walk either!" he said to his Godfather heatedly.

The argument ended when Remus managed to hail a few cabs from the crowded London street, and the five, Severus albeit reluctantly, piled in. Draco, Harry, and Remus were in one car, Severus and Albus in the other.

Harry continued his soft humming and muttering until the reached the street outside headquarters. They paid the cabbies and as the two drove off, Draco talked Harry through focusing on Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place. The five watched as it squished the other houses aside as it popped into existence. They started to walk up to the door, but Harry stopped dead, refusing to move.

He stared at the house with unbridled horror and fear. "Harry?" Draco said worriedly, "What's wrong, love?"

"Can't go there," he whispered fearfully, "Sirius wouldn't like it. He wouldn't go back."

"Harry, what are you talking about?" Remus asked worriedly.

"Sirius, Moony, Sirius, Moony, Sirius, Moony you have to help him! It's Sirius! He's trapped there! The Pheonix won't let him out! Like when I was at my family's home. He won't let either of us leave. Let him out, let him out, please let him out, before it's too late, let him out!" Harry whimpered and squeezed his eyes shut, his hands reaching up to grasp and pull at his messy black hair as he squatted down and began to rock back and forth.

Remus and Draco looked at the trembling and whimpering boy heartbrokenly, while Severus for once said nothing and instead just looked off to the side. Albus shamefacedly stared at his feet. He knew very well who Harry meant by 'The Phoenix', and could find no excuse for his behavior that the boy would be able to comprehend.

Remus crouched next to the mentally damaged boy, but when he reached out to rub Harry's back comfortingly, Harry flinched back from his touch. Remus looked surprised at first, his hand still suspended in the air over Harry's back. Then he let his hand drop and stood, stepping away from Harry and giving the boy his space. Neither Remus, nor Draco, or even Albus, could think of anything to say to Harry to calm him down.

Surprisingly, it was Severus who found a way to soothe the boy. He stepped close to Harry and, without touching the young Gryffindor, bent over, whispering rapidly in the boy's ear. The others watched as Harry's glazed expression cleared a little, and his breathing slowed. Then he turned his head slightly and whispered something back to Severus. They continued to whisper back and forth and slowly Severus managed to manipulate Harry into walking closer to the house without the boy even realizing it.

Before Harry knew what had happened, they were on the front porch. Once he realized how close he was to the house his Godfather had hated so much, he started to panic. He would've bolted had it not been for the fact that Draco and Remus each had gotten a good grip on his arms, one on each side, and Severus was standing directly behind him, blocking his escape. He stood there, trembling and hyperventilating, clinging tightly to Draco with his right hand and Remus with his left, as Albus stepped to the front of the group.

Albus knocked softly on the door, and they heard muffled footsteps and voices on the other side before it was opened to reveal a haggard looking Molly Weasley.

"Did you find him, Albus?" she whispered.

He said nothing but stepped to the side, showing the trembling Harry behind him.

"Harry!" Molly cried and threw the door aside and ushered them in. She had hardly shut the door behind her before she threw her arms around Harry, sobbing heavily. Harry said nothing but stiffened and began to shake even more violently before Remus managed to pull Molly off.

A witch Draco recognized as being from the Order came out of the kitchen to see what all the fuss was about, then gasped when she saw Harry. "They found him!" she said to someone back in the kitchen, "Harry's back, they found him!"

Before long, the entire front room was filled with people from the Order and their families, very few of which had fought beside Harry during the war. Women were weeping with joy, children were whooping and laughing, and each of the men seemed to want to get close enough to Harry to either try and shake his hand or give him a friendly slap on the back.

Draco looked at the crowd in irritation. Couldn't they see that a loud, rambunctious, welcome home party was not what Harry needed right now? He looked over at his lover worriedly. Harry's eyes were glazed over and he continued to tremble violently. His mouth was open slightly, his lower lip trembling, and he was close to tears. All Draco wanted was to get Harry somewhere nice and quiet and peaceful to sleep. The crowd only seemed to get louder, and suddenly Draco couldn't take it anymore.

"ENOUGH!" he bellowed, absolutely livid, and the crowd fell into a shocked silence. The only sound that could be heard was Harry's soft whimpers as the Order stared at the fuming young Malfoy. Remus sensed what Draco was about to do and drew Harry back, pulling him into his arms, as Severus and Albus stepped protectively in between them and the crowd of people.

"How dare you!" Draco hissed, trembling with rage. "How _dare_ you! Harry does not need a welcome party right now! He's tired and sick, and all you can think about is congratulating him on his most recent defeat of the Dark Lord and asking him how he did it! The last thing he needs right now is to be surrounded by a bunch of people he barely knows demanding to know where he has been for the past few monthes!"

"But we have a right to know!" someone bravely ventured from the back of the room.

Draco postively exploded. "A right to know? A RIGHT TO KNOW? WHERE WERE YOU, THEN? WHERE WERE YOU WHEN VOLDEMORT ATTACKED THE SCHOOL? WHERE WERE YOU WHEN VOLDEMORT HELD HIM UNDER THE CRUCIATUS? WHERE WERE YOU WHEN HE DESTROYED THE DARK LORD ON HIS OWN? WHERE WERE YOU WHEN VOLDEMORT DESTROYED HIS SANITY?" he gestured behind himself to Harry, who was currently cradled in Remus' arms as he cried, with Severus, Remus, and Albus glaring at them, almost as livid as Draco was.

"And where were you, when Harry went missing, hmm? Off celebrating the Dark Lord's final demise, were you? Out of all of you here, how many of you actually tried to find Harry? HOW MANY OF YOU CARED THEN? None. None of you truly cared so long as the Dark Lord was gone for good. Out of everyone here, only Albus, Severus, Remus, and I kept looking. Out of all the people not here, only Tonks and the Weasley twins helped us to find him! And do any of you here even know where it was we found him? Or were you more concerned with the fact your precious savior would be back soon, to tell his dashing tale to you all? Do you know where he's been?"

A few of the crowd weakly shook their heads, but most just stood dumbly.

"A BLOODY MENTAL HOSPITAL, THAT'S WHERE!"

The Order members flinched back, and Molly Weasley could be heard in the background sobbing.

"The Muggles found him wandering around the countryside six monthes ago, badly injured, both mentally and physically. He's been stuck in a Muggle mental institution for six months while you lot drink to the end of the Dark Lord! So how _dare_ you try and claim a right to speak to Harry?"

The Order members shifted uneasily in the wake of Draco's wrath.

"Get out," he said coldly.

When no one moved he screamed at them, "GET OUT!"

The Order members shuffled out of the room, some of them heading to the kitchen and the fireplace to Floo out, others going upstairs to the Apparition point they had set up in one of the rooms. Molly and Arthur Weasley hung back for a moment.

"We just wanted – "

"Get out," Draco whispered one last time.

They left.

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End chapter two.

Let it be known to all that I will never abandon any of my stories. I will finish each and every one of them. I just take forever with updates, and I apologize profoundly for making anyone wait. Thank you for sticking with me.


	3. Death's Door

Author's Note: Language, violence, Yaoi of the HPDM variety

Disclaimer: Still not mine. Like that would've changed since the last chapter.

I am pleased to announce that I finally worked out an outline for the entirety of this story. It will be ten chapters long, including the epilogue, and I will be getting to the point fairly quickly. So, enjoy the new chapter!

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Ch 3) Death's Door

Once Draco had kicked the Order out of Grimmauld Place that night, they had brought Harry to a spare bedroom on the second floor. Severus, as a trained Healer and Potions Master, had given Harry a thorough examination, to see if the Muggles had missed anything and if anything more could be repaired.

Harry's final showdown with Voldemort hadn't left a physical scratch on him, though he was still physically and magically exhausted. His unstable mental condition would make it more difficult for him to control his magic, so his depleted magical stores were actually a good thing for now. The physical weakness had been almost completely healed by his stay in the Muggle hospital for six monthes.

His mental condition was irrepairable by magic. With time, he could improve, but it was obvious that Harry would never be the same. Harry's final battle with his arch nemesis had proved too much for him to handle. His mind had snapped under the pressure that had been placed on him the moment the name Voldemort had first reached his ears, and his grasp on reality had been shattered. There would be no recovery.

Albus, Severus, and Remus had set up Harry's room with simple furniture that was charmed to keep Harry from hurting himself by accident. There was a nice, comfortable bed positioned opposite the window. Under said window was a low bookshelf with several picture books, as well as some longer chapter books, and a few full-length novels. Harry's mental condition had given him an extremely short attention span, however, so the books most often read would probably be the short, easy-to-understand picture books.

In the middle of the floor was small table he could sit and draw at, something Harry had discovered he enjoyed during his stay in the mental hospital. Since he refused to use anything else to draw, there was a good supply of differently colored Sharpie markers and plain Muggle computer paper neatly put away in lidded plastic boxes under the table. However, Albus still had to charm the walls to keep Harry from being able to draw on them.

They had gotten Harry a good supply of simple, comfortable, and functional clothes; mostly sweatpants, jeans, t-shirts, and sweaters, as well as socks and underwear. These were stored in a chest-of-drawers, which had been placed in the closet so it was out of the way. Harry's trunk, filled with all his school things and personal items, was put in Draco's room. Just in case, Albus had charmed so only Draco, Severus, Remus, or himself could open it. They didn't want Harry to get a hold of his invisibility cloak and disappear, or get into anything else that could prove dangerous.

Harry was only allowed to leave his room if he had one of them there to supervise him. Even though Grimmauld Place had been cleaned out thoroughly several times since Sirius had given it to the Order as headquarters, there were still some issues with the contents of the house, in particular with the one room they had never been able to get into to clean out; Mrs. Black's bedroom. They didn't want any accidents, so someone was always with Harry at all times.

Speaking of the Order, after Draco's little tantrum, they had left the small group of Wizards alone for the most part. There was one incident the night after they found Harry, in which Molly Weasley had tried to come to Grimmauld Place in the middle of the night and sneak Harry home with her to the Burrow, saying that he needed to be at home with his family. Draco had gotten so angry at this, Severus had had to Stupefy him to keep him from destroying the house with accidental magic. Needless to say, she hadn't been back, though they doubted this would be the end of it.

Draco had been caring for his mentally ill lover almost day and night, with help from his friends. These seven – Draco Malfoy, Albus Dumbledore, Remus Lupin, Severus Snape, Nymphadora Tonks, Fred Weasley, and George Weasley – were the only ones to look for Harry after Voldemort's death. While Draco and Severus had searched the Wizarding underbelly for any vengeful ex-Death Eaters that may have captured him, Albus and Remus searched the Wizarding upper world, and Tonks and the Weasley twins searched the Muggle world. It had been Tonks that had found Harry, breaking into the Muggle hospital records and looking for him that way.

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Draco squirted some ketchup onto Harry's scrambled eggs for him, just the way the Gryffindor liked it, and watched, smiling sadly, as the boy dug into his breakfast enthusiastically. Severus sat on Harry's other side, reading the Daily Prophet as he drank his morning coffee. Draco watched Harry eat his eggs and sausage with gusto. He dearly hoped that someday soon Harry would be as close to back to normal as he could be.

It was three weeks after Harry had been found in the Muggle mental hospital. There had been little to no improvement in Harry's mental condition. Severus, as Harry's personal physician and psychologist, feared the worst; that there would be no improvement, and Harry would be the same completely crazy young man they had found in the psychiatric ward until his death. Draco was heart-broken, but continued to care for Harry to the best of his ability.

Often at night, even with Dreamless Sleep, Harry would have nightmares. Cedric's death, Sirius's death, and Ron and Hermione's deaths at the Final Battle were the most common. After he woke from these nightmares, it was all they could do to get him back to sleep. During the day he was fairly alright, though sometimes he would have horrible mood swings, the worst of which he had started throwing things at anyone who tried to come near him.

Hearing a tapping at the kitchen window, Draco looked up to see Artemis, his eagle owl and faithful companion since he had started Hogwarts, at the window. He smiled and, with a glance back at Harry, went to open the window. Artemis swept in and landed on his perch after dropping a letter from Narcissa on Draco's lap. Draco smiled as he opened and read the letter. Since Lucius' death during the Last Battle at Hogwarts, his mother had been so much happier. Forced into the arranged marriage when she was only eighteen, Narcissa had never loved or even liked her husband. She was free now to live her life, and had even started dating again, with (shockingly) Remus Lupin.

Draco looked up from his letter when an unknown plain-looking owl swept in and dropped an familiar red envelope in front of Harry. Harry looked at it curiously as Draco and Severus stared in shock first at it, then at each other. Who would send Harry a Howler?

The envelope began to smoke as they stood. Severus pulled Harry's chair back and stood in front of him. Cautiously, Draco opened the envelope.

The voice was horrible – low, deep, and forbidding, such that Harry began to shake and whimper behind Severus. However, it's message was, if anything, worse.

_"How dare you, Potter? You dare to defy our Lord? You will pay for this with your own blood, you little half-blood rat, so you'd best watch your back, before I stick a knife in it."_

Draco and Severus stared in horror as the Howler proceeded to shred itself in midair before the fragments caught fire and turned to ash.

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"You're sure neither of you recognized the voice?"

Draco groaned in exasperation. "Yes, Tonks, we're sure. I couldn't even tell what gender the person was, let alone who it was. All I know is they were really, really, _really_ evil-sounding."

"Well, 'evil-sounding' doesn't do much for identification. Anyone can do an evil sounding voice. Hell, even Professor Dumbledore could do an evil sounding voice if he wanted to."

Tonks lifted the plastic baggie of ashes from the Howler up to her face to see them better.

"I believe you guys, but I'm still going to have to get this over to forensics to see if these ashes really are from a Howler. Auror policy and all that crap," she lowered the bag and smiled at them.

"Draco, Severus, do you think you could both write down what you remember it saying for me?" she said, handing then each a pad of paper and a quill. They took their respective supplies and started writing while Tonks talked to Harry a little, to see what he could tell her, which wasn't much.

"That thing was loud!" he said, with the air of a small child.

Tonks winced slightly. "Yes Harry, Howlers generally are very loud. Do you remember what it said?"

"It was loud. I didn't like it. It said mean things to me," Harry stuck out his lower lip, pouting.

"What exactly did it say, Harry? Tell me what it said."

"Threatened me, said it'd stab me in the back. But, I thought Howlers didn't have hands?" He looked at her questioningly.

Tonks sighed and scrubbed her face with her hands. "No, Harry, they don't have hands."

"Then how could it stab me? It said it would."

"Harry, the Howler isn't going to stab you. The person who sent it wants to try, though."

"Well that's not very nice of them, is it?"

Tonks giggled a little, while Draco started sniggering. "No, Harry it's not. That's why you need to tell me what you think the Howler said, so I can keep it from happening, okay?"

"I told you. It said it'd stab me in the back."

"Yes, I heard that bit. Did it say anything else?"

Harry looked thoughtful for a moment, then his face lit up as he remembered.

"Voldemort! Voldemort! They talked about Voldemort!"

Tonks beamed at him. "That's good, Harry! That's great that you remembered that. Thank you. Here!" she said, handing him a Chocolate Frog. His face lit up again as he ripped open the box and bit into the chocolate.

"Say thank you, Harry," Severus said absently to the boy without looking up as he finished writing what he remembered of the death threat down.

"Thank you, Harry!" the young Gryffindor sang out, smiling brightly at Tonks through a mouthful of chocolate. Tonks covered her smile with a hand before saying, "You're very welcome, sweetie."

"Here, Tonks," Severus said as he handed her the paper and pen.

"That's the best we could remember," Draco said, standing up and passing back his own pen and paper.

"Thanks guys, this'll really help. I just have one more question, and then you guys can go. It's kind of a dumb question, considering who the target is, but it's standard procedure to ask. Can you think of anybody with a grudge against Harry?"

"Death Eaters," was Draco's immediate response.

"Yes, obviously. But was there anyone else?"

"Not that I can think of," Draco said, brow furrowed.

"I can think of one person. Though I don't know why she would do something like this," Severus said.

"Who is it, Severus?" Tonks asked him.

"Molly Weasley."

Draco gasped. "Severus, you don't really think she'd do something like this? She loves Harry!"

"And she was royally pissed when we refused to let her take him to the Burrow. I know it's not her nature, but it's best we cover all the bases."

"Molly Weasley, right." Tonks looked troubled, but she wrote down the name regardless.

"Well, I think we're done for know." She said, looking up from her notes, "I'll Floo you if I get anything. And don't worry, Draco, Severus, we'll catch this guy. No one can threaten our boy and get away with it. Just keep him close to you okay?"

Draco and Severus nodded and waved farewell as they each took one of Harry's hands in their own and led him out of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement.

Tonks sat heavily at her desk with a sigh, staring at the plastic baggie of ashes and Severus' and Draco's notes.

"Poor Harry," she murmured sadly, "You never get a break do you?"

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End Chapter 3

Likey? No likey? Please let me know!


	4. Dirty Little Secrets I

Author's Note: Language, violence, angst, Harry/Draco slashy goodness 

Disclaimer: (checks over self) nope, still not J.K.Rowling.

GASP chapter four…sorry it took so long.

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Ch 4) Dirty Little Secrets I

Draco was staring into emerald green eyes. These eyes had always captivated him, even more so now that they were no longer hidden behind those stupid glasses. Contact lenses were a godsend, Draco decided.

"I told you this would look better!" he said, grinning broadly at the petite Gryffindor as he observed the effect contacts had on him in the men's room mirror.

"I don't know, Draco," Harry said uncertainly. "I look…weird…without my glasses."

"No, you don't, you just aren't used to not wearing them," Draco said. He eyed his classmate critically. "You know, we should've ditched the glasses before now. The girls are going to be all over you."

"And they weren't before? All they see is a famous face. And even if they did see past it, it's not like it would matter." Harry muttered the last bit to himself under his breath.

"What was that?" Draco said questioningly. "Are you not interested in girls then?"

Harry sighed dramatically. "Yes, it's true," he said with false angst, "My secret is out. Harry Potter, the Boy-Who-Lived, the Chosen One, Gryffindor's Golden Boy, and the youngest Quidditch player in a century, is a bloody pouf."

His tone changed suddenly, his voice small and almost timid. "Are you mad, Draco? Do you want to not be friends again? I understand if you don't –"

Draco stopped him with a finger over Harry's lips. "Why would I mind, Harry, when I'm the exact same?" he whispered before leaning down slightly and capturing Harry's lips with his own.

The Gryffindor gasped in surprise and Draco took the opportunity to deepen the kiss, plundering Harry's mouth with his tongue. Harry moaned and all but melted in Draco's arms, responding to the kiss almost shyly.

After what seemed like hours, Draco pulled back. Harry blinked open those sparkling green eyes and smiled at Draco. "I guess you don't mind then…"

Draco smirked and leaned back in for another kiss.

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Draco woke with a start. He sat up gasping for breath as he recalled the feel of Harry's lips on his own, before letting out a growl of frustration.

Dammit, but these dreams were annoying. He hated seeing Harry normal again, lucid, only to lose that clarity in his lover when he woke. It was so infuriating. He dreamed all the time anymore, memories of what they had had before, fantasies of what could have been.

Draco ran a finger over his lips gently as he remembered once more the sensation of his and Harry's first kiss, brought to the forefront of his mind by the dream/memory. A tear of grief rolled down his cheek unnoticed. If only things could go back to the way they were before. He had Harry back, but it wasn't the same. It wasn't his Harry. This Harry was so different, so innocent and fragile, that Draco was almost afraid to touch him.

Draco let out a scream of frustration and grief and threw his bedside lamp across the room. It smashed against the doorframe, narrowly missing Severus' head as he came in. Draco didn't notice; he had hid his head in his hands.

"In a bad mood this morning, Draco?" Severus commented dryly.

Draco jerked his head up at the sound of Severus' voice. "Severus! Merlin, I'm sorry! I didn't hit you, did I?" He sat up straight on the bed, pulling his legs under him so he was kneeling on top of his sheets.

"No. But the poor lamp and the doorframe weren't as lucky, I'm afraid," he said, nudging one of the broken shards of the lamp with his toe.

Draco flushed pink and looked down at his lap.

"Might I ask why you decided to have a relapse of your throwing things phase from when you were three?"

"I never had a 'throwing things phase'," Draco said cooly.

"Yes, you did. Don't change the subject. Why did you throw the lamp? It's not like it was a particularly ugly lamp or anything, so why the demolition?"

Draco sucked in a breath and looked moodily at the wall, "Harry," he muttered.

"Harry? What about him? Was he drawing on the ceiling again?" 

"No…I just…I can't stand this! It hurts, Severus, to see him like this!"

Severus sat on the bed next to the blonde and pulled his godson into a hug. Draco clung to him like a five-year-old after a nightmare.

"I know, Draco. I know."

"No!" Draco said angrily, pushing away from Severus' chest. "No, you don't know! You couldn't possibly know!"

"Enlighten me, then, Draco."

Draco's tone changed from angry and frustrated to sad. He seemed wistful and quiet.

"I see Harry, and I just want to kiss him, so badly that it hurts! I want to hold in my arms. I want to be able to just _talk_ with him, the way we used to be able to. But I can't even do that! He'll never be able to get a job, or graduate, or anything normal people do."

His voice cracked, and he shut his eyes and took in a deep shuddering breath. Severus said nothing, but drew Draco closer to him. The blonde sighed softly, leaning into the embrace as he continued speaking in a whisper.

"That's what he always wanted, you know? To be normal. To live his life as a nameless face in the crowd. To have a normal job, and a family of his own…That was his dream. And now it's completely ruined."

Draco pulled away and looked up at Severus, tears gathering in his eyes.

"I had wanted that too. I wanted all of that with him. I wanted to share my life with him. But now, even hugging him seems almost taboo or something. It's like he's no more than a child, unable to truly understand the concept of a relationship with someone. It feels like…like my loving him and trying to maintain a relationship with him in this condition should be outlawed or something, because he doesn't have the capability of looking at a situation and deciding for himself whether or not he likes or wants what is going on. I want to love him, but at the same time, I don't want to end up hurting him."

He sighed and banged his head back against the headboard a few times. "I just don't know what I'm going to do, Severus."

Severus pulled Draco into another embrace as a silent gesture of comfort. The blonde leaned his head against Severus shoulder, clinging to his godfather as his shoulders began to shake.

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The death threat had come almost a month ago. So far they had had no progress finding out who sent it, and they had not heard from the person since. Though they were still careful, the group had begun to relax slightly, hoping that maybe it had been just a cruel joke, or that whoever it was had lost interest.

Out of everyone in their little circle, only Remus and Severus lived at Grimmauld Place with them. The others would visit as often as they could, but most of the time it was just Remus, Severus, Draco, and Harry. Severus did still teach at Hogwarts, but flooed home each night to be with Harry, Draco, and the others.

Today though, Draco, Remus and Harry found themselves alone. Severus had gone to Diagon Alley to pick up some supplies, it being the weekend. Tonks and the twins were working, and Albus was away on business.

Harry and Draco were in the process of eating lunch at the kitchen table, Remus leaning up against the counter while he drank his tea and read the Prophet. Draco and Remus had teamed up and managed to put together some macaroni and cheese, one of Harry's favorites. While Draco ate with a fork, Harry was happily digging into his own bowl with a spoon. Neither Remus nor Draco wanted to take any chances with Harry using a fork. Remus had politely refused the creamy pasta, settling for a simple cup of tea.

As he ate, Draco's eyes were on Harry, who had stopped in the middle of clumsily lifting a spoonful of macaroni and cheese to his mouth. He turned the spoon over so that all the pasta slowly plopped back into the bowl, then held the cheese-coated spoon up to his face and stared at it intently. Draco set his fork down in his own bowl to watch, smiling sadly but fondly at the pout forming on the mentally ill boy's face.

Suddenly Harry spoke, his words causing Remus to look up as well.

"Hurt Prince."

Draco frowned. "Harry?" he said questioningly, "What's wrong, love? What are you talking about?"

Harry didn't answer, but his eyes widened and became suspiciously bright, to the point where they appeared to be glowing. He opened his mouth slowly, and began to speak again, his voice softer and more childlike than ever.

"Hurt prince, don't hurt Prince, no one sees, no one but me, and I'm too late. Hit, smack, crack. Silver flash, blood on the ground, but no one sees. Someone see, someone save him! Don't cry Prince, hurt will go away. For a while. But it comes back. Always comes back. Coming…I'm coming…"

Harry blinked and glanced up at them before dropping his spoon with a splat into the bowl of pasta, squirming slightly in his seat and whimpering. Remus and Draco stared first at him, then glanced at one another, brows furrowed in confusion. 'What was all that about?' they wondered.

Quite suddenly the low fire in the grate flared, startling the two of them out of their fog. Harry paid no mind to the flashing emerald flames, but continued to looked down at his lap, fidgeting and making soft keening noises.

"Draco, Remus?" Tonks said anxiously from the fireplace. Remus folded his newspaper while Draco got up from his seat and kneeled before Tonks' head resting in the coals. "Tonks? What is it?" he said worriedly. Remus maneuvered around the table to see and hear her better as well, a frown furrowing his brows.

"Oh, thank Merlin you're all there. Listen, I need you guys to meet me down at Saint Mungo's immediately. It's Severus. He's been attacked."

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Draco and Remus practically flew through the halls on the fourth floor of Saint Mungo's, each clutching one of Harry's hands and pulling him wih them as they went. He followed without protest, but had not stopped whimpering since his strange words at lunch. Draco glanced back at his lover worriedly. Harry was following them trustingly, his eyes locked on his feet, paying no attentions to his surroundings. The sight made Draco's heart hurt. Before, during the war, Harry had always been on the alert, taking in every bit of his surroundings. Lax attention was a good way to get yourself killed. But now…

Draco pushed the thoughts to the back of his head as they came to the door of Severus room. Tonks was standing outside waiting for them.

"Oh good, you guys made it," she said, "They found him in an side alley just off the main street in Diagon Alley. He was hurt pretty badly. They tended him as best as they could, and they said he should be alright. He's on about ten different potions to heal him and keep the worst of the pain at bay, but he's still in some pretty sorry shape. They said they want to keep him here for a while, until they're certain he's recovered enough to function as normal."

"Can we see him now?" Draco asked. Tonks didn't answer, but merely opened the door to Severus' room and stepped aside to allow the other three past.

Draco stopped short just inside the doorway, staring at the sight before him.

Severus lay limply on the bed, his eyes closed and his breathing labored. He had bandages wrapping around most of his body. There was one around his head, the white cloth peeking through his hair and covering his forehead. Another one wrapped about his chest, shoulder and stomach, and his entire right arm was encased in the thick white cloth. Many of the bandages still had blood leaking through. His face was bruised and bloody, a blackish-purple ring raising up around his left eye. The darkened, damaged flesh made the unbruised parts of his skin look even paler than usual.

Standing behind Draco with Remus in the doorway, Harry started whimpering even more when he caught sight of Severus' bloodied and battered form. "See?" he whispered, "Too late, too late, message came too late. Oh, my Prince!" Harry moaned and covered his face with his hands.

"Draco," Remus said softly, rubbing Harry's back soothingly, "You go ahead and see Severus first. I'm going to sit out in the hall with Tonks and Harry, see if I can calm him down."

Draco nodded in agreement, and Remus smiled sadly before turning Harry around and pushing him gently out to the hall. "Come, on, pup. Let's let Draco and Severus have some alone time for now," he said softly as he led Harry to one of the benches in the hallway outside. Tonks nodded to Draco before following Remus and Harry to the bench.

Draco turned back towards the room and took in a deep breath. He walked quietly to Severus' bedside and sat in a chair positioned next to it. He reached out and grasped one long delicate hand, squeezing it gently.

Severus twitched, and his eyelids fluttered. Draco leaned forward and called him quietly. "Sev?"

The Potions Master groaned and slowly blinked his eyes open, wincing and squinting. Taking out his wand, Draco dimmed the lights so they wouldn't hurt Severus' eyes.

The injured Slytherin struggled to speak, but his throat was dry, and all that came out was a hoarse croak. Wordlessly, Draco conjured a glass of water and held it to Severus' lips, putting a hand behind his head to support him and help him drink.

Severus drank thirstily until the glass was empty, turning his head away from the second glass that Draco conjured. Draco carefully laid the Potions Master's head back down on the pillow, setting the glass on a small table next to the head of the bed.

He then grabbed ahold of Severus' hand once more, squeezing it gently. He felt tears gathering in his eyes. Another of his loved ones had been hurt. Why couldn't they just be left alone? Why did fate love to pick on them so much?

"Draco?" Severus called weakly.

"I'm here," Draco answered, "I'm right here, Sev."

Severus blinked as he tried to focus on the blonde, his concussion making it difficult to see straight. "Draco…you're here?" he managed to get out. He grinned dazedly when he finally managed to focus his eyes and recognized his godson's trembling form.

"Hey," Draco said, blinking back tears and trying to smile for Severus, "Yeah, I'm here. Remus and Tonks and Harry are out in the hall, and the others should be here any minute now." He gave another pained smile and swallowed hard.

"How are you feeling?" the blonde asked in a whisper.

"Like I got struck by lightening after the hippogriffs ran me over." Severus said weakly. "Better than I was, though," he muttered as an afterthought.

Draco winced and looked down. He hated it when the people he cared about were hurting and he could do nothing about it. How could this have happened? Just this morning Severus was perfectly fine. He had been the one comforting Draco, helping him to Reparo his lamp after helping him through his breakdown. Now the strong Potions Master was laying broken in a hospital bed, having been assaulted while out running some simple errands.

"Sev," Draco said cautiously, "What happened? Tonks just said you were attacked, and that you'd been brought here to Saint Mungo's, and…" his voice cracked, and the room turned blurry as his eyes filled with tears. He blinked and felt the tears leave his eyes and roll down his cheeks, leaving twin tracks of damp skin that turned cold as the cool air of the Hospital hit them.

Severus let go of Draco's hand and reached up to wipe away a tear. His eyes got a distant, faraway look in then as he thought back to the events from earlier that morning. Slowly, he began to speak.

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Severus muttered irritably to himself under his breath as he swooped down Diagon Alley on his way back to the Leaky Cauldron.

"I can't believe this. They said in their catalogue that they had it, so why are they now saying that they don't even stock it? I might just have to go see if I can't find it myself. But then, that would require a visit to Australia, which is one of the last places I am interested in visiting at the moment, especially if it means grubbing around in the dirt in the middle of nowhere looking for a damned plant –" On and on his tirade went, though the furious frustrated mutterings never went higher than a whisper, so as not to attract the attention of those around him.

He had just been to Knockturn Alley to visit a favorite apothecary of his. He had hoped to find a certain rare ingredient to a potion that might help with keeping Harry's mood swings under control. The apothecary in question didn't have it, which made Severus more than a little annoyed, since that particular store was well-known for stocking some very hard to get ingredients.

Severus was so distracted by his thoughts that he didn't notice that there was someone watching him until, while passing next to a tiny side alley between the shops of Diagon Alley, he heard a strange noise.

He stopped and backtracked a little to have a look in the dark alley. He drew his wand and held it out in front of him as he cautiously stepped forwards to investigate. The first sign that there was actually someone there and that the noise wasn't just from a cat or something was a sudden, unexpected blow to the side of his head. It was so heavy a hit that it knocked him to the ground.

Dazed, Severus groaned and put a hand up to feel his head, confused and startled when his fingers came away with blood coating them. He had been hit hard enough that he barely noticed when someone took hold of his ankles and dragged him the rest of the way into the tiny little alleyway.

Severus blinked dazedly, trying to get his bearings. He couldn't see too well, only hazy, blurry shapes. A tall dark shape was looming over him, and he saw it move. Quite suddenly, another flash of sharp pain swept through him, this time coming from his stomach. Severus cried out in pain and curled up around the spot where his attacker had kicked him. Then another kick landed on his arm, and third on his face.

The pain was immobilizing him, and he felt adrenaline rush through his body as he began to panic. He staggered to his feet, putting a hand against the wall for support as the world seemed to spin.

However, his attacker was not finished. Whoever it was grabbed hold of his arm in one hand and the back of his head with the other, yanking his arm down so he had nothing to brace himself against the wall. The other hand swiftly slammed his head straight forward into the solid brick wall of the building.

The hands let go, and Severus staggered backwards, reeling from this second blow to the head. He felt something warm spreading downward over his face, and when he reached up a hand to feel the wound he felt sticky wetness under his fingers. Blood.

The next thing he knew, the attacker had taken hold of his robes by the back of his collar and his side, and swung him around, using the momentum to throw him, hard, into a pile of wooden crates, which splintered and broke from the impact.

Groaning, Severus lay there unmoving, hoping that whoever it was would leave him alone now so he could die in peace. He heard the broken boards to his right clattering, and then a moment later a long, solid, wooden object connected with his right shoulder in a downwards stroke. He could hear as well as feel his collarbone break, and he screamed in pain. The board came down several more times, always landing on a different spot.

Finally, after several minutes, it stopped. Severus lay panting on his side, struggling to open his eyes and get to his feet. He needed to get up, to fight back. Where was his wand?

He finally managed to open his eyes, but one was rapidly swelling shut, and the other's vision was obscurred by the blood dripping down into it. He couldn't see. He felt a pair of strong hands drag him away from the pile of broken wooden boxes and flip him onto his back. He felt a warm weight settle over his hips and one hand started pressing down onto his broken collarbone, pushing him down against the ground. He gasped from the pain and whimpered, squirming and trying to get away. He cracked on eye open, just managing to catch a glimpse of something shining silver before a new kind of pain erupted on his chest, causing him to whimper in pain.

The knife slashed across his chest and arms again and again, and he could feel the warm blood dripping down his sides and shoulders to pool under him, soaking into his robes and cloak. He struggled weakly, in too much pain to move too much, and the hand holding him down shoved hard against his broken bone. He whimpered softly and stilled, but the pressure did not let up.

The knife turned to a new angle, and this time, instead of simply drawing a red line through his skin, he felt it pierce his flesh and bite deep into his body, just below the left side of his ribcage. His attacker viciously twisted the dagger before yanking it back out, and Severus screamed.

The weight resting on his midsection dissappeared, replaced a moment later by an iron grip on his hair. His head was yanked up off the ground, pulled close enough to his attacker's face that he could feel their hot breath on his ear. He tried to open his eyes to see who it was, but the world was spinning around him, and he quickly shut them again. That last thing he heard before passing out was the malicious whispered words of his attacker.

"I'm coming."

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Draco stared at Severus in horror as the man finished telling him what had happened. It was like what Harry had said at lunch earlier. What did that mean?

"Do you remember anything at all about the person who attacked you?"

Severus blinked and winced, trying to remember. Finally he shook his head slowly. "I could hardly see straight. Tall, slender, dark…not much besides that. Shouldn't have let them catch me off guard." The Potions Master sighed and looked up at Draco. "Sorry," he said softly.

"It's okay," Draco answered, giving him another teary smile. "It wasn't your fault Sev. We'll catch this person, we'll find them and get them locked up, don't worry."

"Tired," Severus muttered. "Head hurts."

Draco reached over and pulled the covers up closer around his injured godfather. "Go to sleep, Sev. We won't leave you. Someone'll be here when you wake up."

Severus gave a weak smile as he drifted back into unconsciousness.

Draco stayed with the wounded Potions Master for a bit longer before going out in the hall. By this time, Albus and the Weasley twins had joined Remus, Tonks and Harry in the hallway.

Tonks and Albus quickly stood from where they were sitting on the bench next to Remus and Harry.

"How is he?" Albus asked worriedly, his expression somber and sad.

"He's sleeping," Draco answered pushing a hand back through his hair. "He was awake for a while, and he managed to tell me what happened." He briefly explained the events to the others, who were as shocked as he was by the end of the story.

Tonks looked up from the notes she was taking, frowning and tapping her pen against the notebook propped against her knee. "I suspect it might have been the same person who sent that death threat to Harry a few weeks ago. We need to be much more careful. Whoever it was, they're serious about this, and very dangerous. There are all sorts of monitoring charms on Diagon Alley to catch dark, violent, and/or harmful spells, but it wouldn't detect physical violence. Whoever it was that attacked Severus knew what they were doing. We scanned the listings for spells cast in that area this morning; someone had placed a notice-me-not charm on the same alley we found Severus, as well a sound-obscurring charm."

"Told you," Harry muttered. The entire group fell silent as they looked at him. He was sitting on the bench next to Remus, hugging himself and rocking back and forth, his eyes locked on a stain on one of the floor tiles in front of him.

"Told you that. No one sees. Poor Prince, my poor Prince. He's hurting now, blood on the ground, blood on black, blood on silver. Silver cuts wide, silver cuts deep. Don't cry, my Prince, don't cry, don't cry. They're coming."

He fell silent and stopped rocking, looking up at them, glancing at each in turn before his eyes landed on Draco.

"Dragon tears," he murmured. "Mustn't cry, Dragon. It'll be alright. Prince is safe now, and we'll follow after."

He grinned at Draco and then turned to face Remus sitting next to him, tugging on his sleeve. "We go visit the Prince now, Moony?" he asked, and Remus smiled, getting up and taking Harry's hand.

"Yes, pup, we'll go see Severus now," he said as he led the mentally ill teenager to Severus' hospital room, "We'll have to be very quiet though. Severus is hurting, and he needs his rest to get better." He opened the door and gently pushed Harry into the room before following and shutting the door with a soft click.

While Albus, Tonks, and the Weasley twins discussed the recent events, Draco went to sit down on a bench a little way away from the others, thinking over what Severus had told him carefully, trying to connect the pieces.

"I'm coming," he whispered to himself. That was what Severus' attacker had said. That was also what Harry had said earlier, just before they got the firecall from Tonks. What did that mean? And how had Harry known that Severus was being attacked? How did Harry know exactly what had been done to hurt the Potions Master, without being told?

Just what was going on?

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End Chapter Four

I love writing Crazy Harry! I wish I could write more of him in this story, but most of it seems to want to focus on Draco. (pout pout) Ah well. Maybe in a future chapter…

I hope you enjoyed, and I hope it made up for the horrible wait. Please review! It will help ward off another long wait! (wink wink)


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